(Photo credit: Julian Leshay Guadalupe/NorthJersey.com / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)

Jets owner Woody Johnson can hardly believe the luck on this circuitous route the franchise has traveled right back to the same starting point.

Pretty much every avenue a team can think of to find a franchise quarterback has been walked by Johnson and the Jets but none of them have led to a return to the playoffs.

The New York franchise's longing for legitimacy and pining for a passer to lead the Jets' flight out of a deep pattern of losing has quarterback atop the offseason list of needs yet again.

But as luck would have it, only one quarterback -- Indiana's Heisman Trophy and national title-winning Fernando Mendoza -- carries a cemented first-round grade in the 2026 draft class.

And taking a swing for a home run with the No. 2 overall pick, that's not an option the Jets want to weigh this time around.

Their past history with draft-and-develop options includes investments in top-five prospects -- most recently Zach Wilson (second overall in 2021), and Sam Darnold (third overall, 2018) -- and a slew of second-rounders, from Geno Smith to Christian Hackenberg. None of them panned out in New York.

Trade for a veteran? Always an option. Then again, acquiring Aaron Rodgers to start the 2023 season served mostly as a grand stage for another dumpster fire. He ruptured his Achilles on the first possession of his first game with the Jets and a roster he helped load with friends and comrades never touched the playoff bar set by Johnson and former GM Joe Douglas.

The Jets tried the free agent route just last March, luring former first-rounder Justin Fields (Bears) with a two-year, $40 million deal. The forward pass was not a friend of Fields with top weapon Garrett Wilson hurt, and first-year coach Aaron Glenn turned to journeyman Tyrod Taylor and eventually undrafted rookie Brady Cook to no avail.

In February, Darnold lifted the Lombardi Trophy with the Seahawks.

A playoff drought running from the end of the 2010 AFC Championship game to the present might not see an immediate end.

But the Jets do have a plan. They loaded up on draft capital by trading away first-round hits Quinnen Williams (to Dallas) and Sauce Gardner (to Indianapolis) with a multi-point U-turn in mind. Four picks in the top 44 is enough draft ammunition for the Jets to get creative in their pursuit of playmakers.

Even so, the help wanted sign looms large at the NFL's most vital position.

Here's a snapshot of the Jets entering the NFL Scouting Combine:

Projected 2026 salary cap space: $79.1 million

Highest salary cap figure for 2026: CB Brandon Stephens, $13.97 million; QB Justin Fields, $23 million

Key free agents: RB Breece Hall, LB Quincy Williams, OG Alijah Vera-Tucker

Team needs: QB, DE, DT, CB, WR

2026 draft selections (round: overall pick)

First round: 2nd, 16th overall

Second round: 33rd, 44th overall

Fourth round: 103rd

Fifth round: 175th, 178th

Sixth round: 193rd, 207th

Seventh round: 219th, 243rd

--Field Level Media